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Home » Chess Players » 10 Best German Chess Players (Top FIDE Grandmasters in Germany)

10 Best German Chess Players (Top FIDE Grandmasters in Germany)

Editorial Staff by Editorial Staff
in Chess Players
Best German Chess Players

In the last list of the top Grandmasters in each country series, we went over the best American Chess players. Now in this article, we’re going through the ten best German Chess players from Germany. The list below starts from number ten in order from the tenth highest FIDE rated player to the number one spot.

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  • 10) Niclas Huschenbeth
    • Profiles
  • 9) Dmitrij Kollars
    • Profiles
  • 8) Daniel Fridman
    • Profiles
  • 7) Rasmus Svane
    • Profiles
  • 6) Georg Meier
    • Profiles
  • 5) Vincent Keymer
    • Profiles
  • 4) Matthias Bluebaum
    • Profiles
  • 3) Jan Gustafsson
    • Profiles
  • 2) Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu
    • Profiles
  • 1) Alexander
      • Full name: Donchenko, Alexander
      • Title: Grandmaster (GM) 2015
      • International Master (IM) 2012
      • FIDE Master (FM) 2011
      • Born: 1998
      • Federation: Germany
      • World Ranking: 97
      • Rapid: 2535
      • Blitz: 2490
      • Classical (Std): 2648
      • Links to Profiles:
      • FIDE Profile
      • Chess.com

10) Niclas Huschenbeth

Full name: Huschenbeth, Niclas
Title: Grandmaster (GM) 2012
International Master(IM) 2008
Born: 1992
Federation: Germany

World Ranking: 202
Rapid: 2572
Blitz: 2605
Classical (Std): 2608

Profiles

  • FIDE Profile
  • Chess.com

Niclas Huschenbeth has its own website and YouTube channel. He would have never imagined that he would still be playing chess with the same enthusiasm 15 years later when he began learning the game at the age of five. Because he observed that he always organized his toy cars symmetrically, his father started teaching him the rules so that he could watch them. An old wooden chess computer was his opponent when his father was not around.

Nicolas Huschenbeth’s career breakthrough came in 2005 at the German U14 Youth Championships. With one point ahead of his competitors, he became the German Champion for the first time thanks to Jan Gustafsson as his coach. After eleven rounds at the World Championship, he finished in 18th place after making his own personal breakthrough.

9) Dmitrij Kollars

Full name: Kollars, Dmitrij
Title: Grandmaster (GM) 2017
International Master (IM) 2016
Born: 1999
Federation: Germany

World Ranking: 173
Rapid: 2455
Blitz: 2584
Classical (Std): 2621

Profiles

  • FIDE Profile
  • Chess.com

Dmitrij is a 22-year-old chess professional who started his career at the age of 14. This chess player has had an amazing road to follow, he is becoming a chess player as a profession. Dmitrij Kollars is making waves in Germany with his ability to play chess and some of his opponents have even come from other countries. The funny thing is that Dmitrij was not the only person who became a chess prodigy in his family. His parents also have some incredible skills on the chess board.

He won the German Under-16 Chess Championship, earned his IM title after completing the remaining norms at the Nazari Chessfestival and VMCG-Schachfestival, and took first place in the Schlosspark Open in 2015. In 2016, he won his first grandmaster (GM) title after winning a GM tournament in Jūrmala. He finished fourth at the World U16 Chess Championship in 2017 and earned two more GM certificates.

8) Daniel Fridman

Full name: Fridman, Daniel
Title: Grandmaster (GM) 2001
International Master (IM) 1995
Born: 1976
Federation: Germany

World Ranking: 163
Rapid: 2542
Blitz: 2663
Classical (Std): 2624

Profiles

  • FIDE Profile
  • Chess.com

At the age of four, Daniel Grigoryevich Fridman was taught the rules of chess in Riga, Latvia. He became an IM in 1994, Latvian Champion in 1996 and a GM in 2001. In 1999, Fridman immigrated to Germany. GM Fridman became German Chess Champion in 2008 and scored 7.5.

In the second round, he beat Shakhriyar Mamedyarov in the classical games, but lost to Fridman in the 25-minute rapid game tiebreaker and was eliminated from the tournament. In 2012 and 2014, Fridman won both his national championship titles outright with 7.5 points each. He represented Germany at the Chess Olympiad (2012) in Istanbul, where he scored 7/10 and took home the bronze medal.

7) Rasmus Svane

Full name: Svane, Rasmus
Title: Grandmaster (GM) 2016
International Master (IM) 2013
Born: 1997
Federation: Germany

World Ranking: 159
Rapid: 2663
Blitz: 2643
Classical (Std): 2625

Profiles

  • FIDE Profile
  • Chess.com

After finding a chess CD in a breakfast cereal packet when he was four, Svane began learning the game of chess. In 2009, he finished second in the German U12 Chess Championship and won the German U14 Chess Championship in 2010. The German Chess Federation named him the 2010 U14 Player of the Year for his previous success.

At the 2011 German Chess Championship, Svane earned his first IM norm, finishing with 5/9. In 2012, he took his second and third IM titles. The Politiken Cup tournament in July–August gave him his former rating of 7� out of 10. At the 1st Korbach GM tournament in December, he finished with a score of 7/11. In May 2013, FIDE officially designated him the title.

At the 2015 Aeroflot Open, he achieved his first grandmaster (GM) norm with 4� out of 9. He garnered his second at the 2015 Visma GM tournament, scoring 6/9, and reached the ultimate standard during the 2015/2016 Chess Bundesliga season, recording 6/10. He was elevated to GM status in September 2016 as a 19 year old.

6) Georg Meier

Full name: Meier, Georg
Title: Grandmaster (GM) 2007
International Master (IM) 2006
Born: 1987
Federation: Germany

World Ranking: 152
Rapid: 2651
Blitz: 2649
Classical (Std): 2628

Profiles

  • FIDE Profile
  • Chess.com

At the age of three or four, Meier’s mother taught him the basics of chess. He took home first place in Pamplona in 2009. In Sweden, he won the Elite Hotels Open 2015 with 7.5/8. Meier named Vasily Smyslov as one of his idols. Meier’s greatest rating to date was 2669 in March 2011, when he was ranked #75 in the world. In September 2009, when he was rated 2664, his highest ranking was #65 in the world. Since April 2009, he has been in and out of the top 100 on several occasions.

5) Vincent Keymer

Full name: Keymer, Vincent
Title: Grandmaster (GM) 2020
International Master (IM) 2017
Born: 2004
Federation: Germany

World Ranking: 141
Rapid: 2542
Blitz: 2524
Classical (Std): 2630

Profiles

  • FIDE Profile
  • Chess.com

The performance of a 13-year-old schoolboy on 2018 stole the show from the world champion, Magnus Carlsen, and his opponent Fabiano Caruana when he performed the best chess feat in history by a youngster under-14. Surprisingly, Keymer has already broken a record: the youngest international master result in a German competition was at age 10 years and three months.

He comes from a musical family and is a pianist, which may explain why he stagnated at the ages of 11 and 12. The Asian prodigies from India and Uzbekistan were younger than him, appearing to be ahead of him, whilst US youngsters were achieving good results. Keymer goes to school full time, which prevents him from competing in as many events as his competitors. Karlsruhe believes he is the most promising junior in Western Europe.

4) Matthias Bluebaum

Full name: Bluebaum, Matthias
Title: Grandmaster (GM) 2015
International Master (IM) 2012
FIDE Master (FM) 2011
Born: 1997
Federation: Germany

World Ranking: 117
Rapid: 2575
Blitz: 2681
Classical (Std): 2640

Profiles

  • FIDE Profile
  • Chess.com

Blübaum began a rigorous training regimen at the age of eight after learning to play chess. At the age of twelve, he became widely known as part of the Prinzengruppe, a quartet of young German players (“princes”) who were expected to reach grandmasters (“kings”) under German national junior coach Bernd Vökler. Blübaum, Rasmus Svane, Dennis Wagner, and Alexander Donchenko quartet completed their objective in 2016 when Rasmus Svane earned his last grandmaster (GM) norm and thus became the fourth and final member of the group to achieve the title of GM.

3) Jan Gustafsson

Full name: Gustafsson, Jan
Title: Grandmaster (GM) 2003
International Master (IM) 1999
Born: 1979
Federation: Germany

World Ranking: 112
Rapid: 2641
Blitz: 2548
Classical (Std): 2643

Profiles

  • FIDE Profile
  • Chess.com

Jan Gustafsson was born in Hamburg and began playing chess when he was ten years old. He is the founder and frequent commentator for chess24.com, a website that focuses on professional chess events. He resides in Germany with his wife and daughter. In 1994, at the age of 15, he won the German Youth Championships (U15) and in 1996, at the age of 17, he took home the title again (U17). In 1999, he became an IM and a GM in 2003.

2) Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu

Full name: Nisipeanu, Liviu-Dieter
Title: Grandmaster (GM) 1997
International Master (IM) 1994
Born: 1976
Federation: Germany

World Ranking: 108
Rapid: 2636
Blitz: 2637
Classical (Std): 2644

Profiles

  • FIDE Profile
  • Chess.com

Until he moved to the German Chess Federation and had numerous worldwide achievements, including joint first at the Pune Super GM (2004) with then-FIDE World Champion Rustam Kasimdzhanov, Nisipeanu was Romania’s top-rated player. He also won clear first in the 6th European Individual Championship (2005). In the Pardubice Open 2013, he was sitting in tenth place after ten rounds. Nisipeanu is currently ranked 15th on his prime, having been rated 2707 on the October of 2005.

1) Alexander

Full name: Donchenko, Alexander

Title: Grandmaster (GM) 2015

International Master (IM) 2012

FIDE Master (FM) 2011

Born: 1998

Federation: Germany

World Ranking: 97

Rapid: 2535

Blitz: 2490

Classical (Std): 2648

Links to Profiles:

FIDE Profile

Chess.com

In 2011, he gained the title of FIDE Master and in 2012, he earned the IM title. His three IM norms came within five weeks at the 10th International Festival of Meurthe and Moselle – IM in February, where he achieved 6/9. In the German Individual Championship, held in early March 2012, he scored a 5.5/9 and at the 13th European Individual Championship (2012) with 4/9. In October, he earned his GM norms at the Baku Open (2014) with 8/9 and a TPR of 2803, as well as at the 52nd Groningen Chess Festival in 2014 A-Group with 8/9. He also scored 2803 points in February 2015 at the tournament in Århus, Denmark.

 

 

 

That concludes the list of the ten best Filipino Chess players. If you like list posts like this, you may also be interested in seeing the ten best Indian Chess players or the best Canadian Chess players.

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  • Start Here
    • How To Set Up a Chess Board
    • How To Solve Chess Puzzles
    • How To Read Chess Notation
    • Complete List of Official Rules of Chess
    • Chess Terminology
  • Strategy
    • Openings
    • Checkmates Patterns
    • Tactics
  • Players
  • Resources
    • Best Chess Books By Rating Bracket
    • Books Mentioned In The Queen’s Gambit on Netflix (Real and Fake Books)
    • 7 Best Chess Books For Beginners To Cut The Learning Curve
  • About Us
  • Editor
  • Sign Up

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